MINNEAPOLIS -- When the Twins hired Keith Beauregard as their hitting coach this winter, Ryan Kreidler was excited to work with a coach he knew well. But he didn’t want to get ahead of himself.
Kreidler had already changed teams twice in the previous three months, so he wasn’t sure he’d get the chance to work with Beauregard or anyone on the Minnesota staff.
He needn’t have worried.
Kreidler continued his breakout season with a tiebreaking two-out solo homer in the seventh inning as the Twins held off the Rockies, 3-2, at Target Field on Sunday afternoon. The win gave Minnesota its fourth series victory in five tries.
It was the fifth homer in 93 at-bats for the versatile veteran, who’s long been known for his glove but never been able to put up offensive numbers in the Major Leagues. Kreidler entered the year with two homers in more than 200 plate appearances over four seasons.
Now he’s playing regularly, holding down shortstop defensively and producing at the plate. And it’s all adding up to more opportunity.
“I’m just excited,” Kreidler said. “Super pumped. I don’t have very many big league homers still, so every one feels like a big deal. especially one that put us ahead. So, just excited.”
Kreidler didn’t break camp with the Twins this spring, losing out to Tristan Gray for the final roster spot coming out of Fort Myers, Fla. But he produced at Triple-A St. Paul and has shown himself to be valuable with an ability to play both shortstop and center field. And now he’s hitting as well.
After Royce Lewis was optioned to St. Paul in May, the Twins moved Brooks Lee from shortstop to third base, clearing the way for Kreidler and Gray to play short. Kreidler in particular has seized that chance, posting a .326/.392/.565 line in June.
He sports career bests in strikeout rate, hard-hit rate and barrel rate, indicating that this isn’t just a fluke. Kreidler may not hit like this all year, but there’s something different about him. Performance wise, it starts with significantly improved average bat speed -- from 68.5 miles per hour in 2024 to 71 mph last year to 74.6 mph in 2026, above the Major League average of 72.1.
Mentally, it starts with a confident, free approach. Kreidler said he hasn’t specifically focused on bat speed, as some hitters do. Instead, he thinks the improvement results from a combination of being convicted in his approach and optimizing his swing.
“I would say the biggest thing is consistency of approach,” manager Derek Shelton said. “And I think [it helps a little bit that] he and Keith had a relationship before, because of being in Detroit together.”
Facing hard-throwing reliever Seth Halvorsen in a tie game in the seventh, Kreidler laid off a fastball out of the zone, then hammered a 97.9-mph heater at the top of the zone, drilling the pitch into the greenery over the center-field wall. It was the kind of swing on a fastball that he might not have been able to get to in previous years.
“In pursuit of becoming a better hitter, I think I’ve just cleaned up a few things,” he said. “I’m more physical. I feel like I’m more athletic than I have been. I’m healthy. so I think just a combination of good things.
“I would guess it’s mostly just the efficiency," Kreidler added. "And mentality. Putting myself in a good position to get my swing off more often. With the mentality of, I’m getting it off. It’s everything.”
Kreidler credits Beauregard as well, whom he knew from their days together with the Tigers. But he also points to a freedom that comes from knowing that a change in team or being let go is not the end of the world.
“I tried not to come here with too many expectations,” Kreidler said. “Just press the issue as much as I could. I didn’t really know how it would turn out. I’d been DFA’d twice. So I know that that’s always on the table now, and I’m not scared of it anymore. And I think that’s freeing in a way.”